February 2014 Newsletter 801.452.4220
Dear Parents and Students,
2014 started out beautifully for Plain City Elementary! Thank you so much for sending us such great kids. Working together as a team brings great rewards, and we appreciate all that is done on the home front to support education!
Since our weather has been brutally cold and wet, there have been many concerns as to whether or not students would be going outside on any given day. These concerns have prompted me to explain our procedures and expectations so that you can be aware of what to expect from us.
Students need to be outside during the day whenever possible. That being said, some days are just too cold for them to be out for prolonged periods of time. If the temperature is below 17*, we will not send students outside for recess. However, it is imperative that ALL students come to school with adequate clothing to be outside for a prolonged period every day. If we have a fire or other unplanned issues that require us to leave the building, students need to be prepared for the weather. Also, teachers may need to take their class outside for short periods of time during the day to “get the jitters out.” This is a real need on some days, and students need to be prepared to go outside if the need arises.
We feel a responsibility to care for your children as if they were our own. Therefore, we will always make decisions for your children which are in their collective best interest. That being said, we cannot be limited in the decisions we make based on how your children come dressed to school, so it is imperative that you send them dressed to go outside every day. By definition that includes hats, gloves, jackets, and SHOES/BOOTs that are appropriate for the weather.
Also, we need your help in making sure our students arrive on time to school. Each morning we have students check in late, and many times we see the same students arriving tardy day after day. As we visit with these students, many say they have over slept. Please remember that our children need between 10-12 hours of sleep each night. A good night’s rest helps children be refreshed and ready to learn. With this cold weather and snow, please plan for a few extra minutes for your child to walk to school, or for you to have time to shovel the snow. If you plan for this, your child will arrive at school on time and ready to learn.
We want to express a heartfelt THANK YOU to our PTA, Community Council, and the many parent volunteers who continue to donate their valuable time. Our volunteers are a valuable and important component towards student and teacher success at Plain City Elementary, and we are truly grateful to you for this dedicated service!
Thank you for your continued support and for sending us the finest children in the world! Life is wonderful at Plain City Elementary!
Sincerely,
Karla Porter
Principal
Calendar February
3-4 ....... District Science Fair at Weber State University
6 .......... 6th Grade Field Trip—Clark Planetarium
6 .......... Power of the Paw 2nd Quarter Incentive Activity
3-7 ....... National Counseling Week
10-14 .. Safety Week
Boots ’n Bunker’s Assembly
Net Smart Assembly
13 ........ Box Top Store
14 ........ Valentine’s Activities & 6th Grade Dance
17 ........ Washington & Lincoln Day/No school
21 ........ 5th & 6th Grade—Ice Skating
21 ........ PTA Meeting @ 2:00
24-25 .. WSU Storytelling Festival
27 ........ 5th Grade Musical for Parents @ 6:00 PM
28 ........ Class Pictures
Welcome, Katie Amsden!
A big Plain City welcome to our Administrative Intern, Mrs. Katie Amsden! She has already been amazed and astonished with our supportive community and incredible students. We are grateful to call her a Panther, and excited for the ideas and insight she brings!
Kindergarten Round-up
Circle March 26th, at 1:30 PM, as the date for our Kindergarten Round-up! Please contact the school if you have a student who will be a kindergartener next year so we can get the needed materials and forms to you.
Box Top Store
Our Box Top Store has been such a success! Thank you, Pam Witkowski, for heading this up and working so hard! We couldn’t do it without her! Our next store will be on February 13th, so save up all you can! Gluing the Box Tops onto the forms that were sent home really helps us—thank you!
World’s Finest Chocolate Fundraiser
Thank you, thank you, thank you for supporting our World’s Finest Chocolate Fundraiser. We made $8,926.98, which means that many of you consumed a lot of chocolate! This money is greatly needed and will allow our students to have opportunities they would not have had. Thank you, Tami McBride, for organizing this for us, and to our wonderful secretaries, Mrs. Holmes, Mrs. Kohler, and Mrs. Spencer, for countless hours of counting money!
Our students were excited as our winners were announced:
5th Grade will have an ice cream party for selling over 50 cases
1st Place (class that sold the most): Mrs. Loos—they received a GIANT chocolate bar
2nd Place—Mr. Gertsch & Mrs. Simonsen—tied—they have to decide what to do with their GIANT chocolate bar
Mrs. Porter had to wear a Utah Ute shirt all day
The school sold over 200 cases which meant…the teacher of each class that sold the most had to kiss a pig: Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Mankin, Mrs. Bowser, Mr. Gertsch, Mr. Haggerty, Mrs. Loos, and Mr. Stephens. Joining them on stage were Mrs. Amsden, Mr. Whitten, Mrs. Holmes, & Mrs. Porter
Lee’s and Smith’s Receipts
Please continue submitting your receipts to our local grocery stores. We appreciate our partnership with them and are grateful for a simple way for our families to contribute to our school.
Gifted and Talented Classes Begin!
With encouragement from our wonderful Community Council, Plain City has started its own Gifted and Talented program. Many different classes will be offered with a limit to only 15 students per class. Students are recommended by teachers and must meet five of the following nine criteria to qualify: superior reasoning capabilities, intellectual curiosity, excellent written and verbal vocabulary, avid reader, learns quickly and retains information, grasps mathematical concepts, motivated, follows rules and procedures, and gets along well with others. Students will pay a fee to attend classes. Community and staff members will teach these classes that will occur in the mornings before school. Our first two classes offered are Art and Journalism. Upcoming classes will include: literature, drama, public speaking, science aviation, service projects, leadership, math, technology, crocheting, quilting, photography, robotics, film making, weaving, pottery, candle making, sign language, astronomy, rocketry, poetry, family history, non-bake cooking, and origami. A Spanish class will begin next September and last through next school year. We are excited for this new program and what it will add to our already wonderful school!
Utah PTA Region 2 Reflections Winners!
On January 27, 2014, at Bonneville High School, three of our Plain City students were recognized for their outstanding Reflections entries. Awards of Excellence are the very top award. Only one is chosen per age group category and advance to the State competition. Students receiving this award were: Addy Ortiegsen, Literature; Wyatt Clark, Three-dimensional Art. Cole Davidson, one of our Kindergarten students, received the Award for Merit for Visual Arts. Congratulations, students, and thank you for representing Plain City so well!
Math Newsletter II for
Grades K - 6
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Math/Science Olympiad: The location has been changed for this year’s competition. It will be held at the Golden Spike Arena on May 12th and 13th. More information will be coming shortly. Contact Joel Frederiksen (jfrederiksen@wsd.net) at Municipal or Matt Patterson (mpatterson@wsd.net) at the District Office for any questions.
Elementary Mathematics Endorsement Program. Although the second course in the Endorsement Program started January 9th you can still be part of this class (if you act quickly). The course is Rational Numbers and
Proportional Reasoning and is being taught by Lisa Johnson. Please contact Sheri Heiter (sheiter@wsd.net) ASAP if you are interested. Classes meet every Thursday evening from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. through April 24, 2014 at Orion.
The third course will begin in August and will be Algebraic Reasoning. If you haven’t yet joined this cohort, you can pick up the other classes next time they are offered.
SAGE TEST. There will be no math reference sheets for end-of-level testing. Please Note: If the standard says “use” or “apply” the formula, it will be provided in the question stem. If the standard says “know” the formula, students will be expected to know and be able to use the formula.
